JPH0485508A - Telescope - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent focusing on an obstruction which crosses neighborhood while an object at a long distance is observed by inhibiting driving by a lens position driving means when deviation obtained by a lens position deviation calculating means is equal to or over a specified value on a close side from a present lens position. CONSTITUTION:Whether a lens extending direction is on an infinity side or the close side with reference to the present position is decided in motor driving routine. Whether or not the present position exceeds a specified limit value is decided. When the present position is on the infinity side or it exceeds the limit value, lens driving progresses to a step where a motor is moved. In the case that the present position does not attain the specified limit value even though it is on the close side, the double value of a focusing zone is arithmetically operated and compared with the number of pulses to a target position. When the latter is larger than the former, the number of range-finding times is counted, and when the obtained value is equal to or under the specified one, the motor is not moved because there is high possibility that something crosses between an observer and an observed object.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to telescopes such as binoculars and monoculars, and particularly relates to telescopes having an automatic focusing mechanism. -α Technique The telescope of the present invention is not limited to binocular telescopes, but can be applied to monoculars. Iku, “I will do it.”

Boo binoculars with automatic focus function, special public service 1986-6
No. 205, Special Publication No. 60-46407, Japanese Patent Publication No. 561
54 “There is something proposed in No. 705.1
．． : With these binoculars, distant objects &2'A(1,-C
The autofocus mechanism works in the same way for close-range objects. Therefore, for example, when a distant object is in focus and the binoculars are at 2 degrees Celsius, a near object newly comes within the field of view of the binoculars, and the user attempts to focus on the near object.

However, when observing an object at a relatively long distance like this, if some obstacle (for example, a person, car, animal, etc.) crosses between the object and the observer. -) (Generally with binoculars, there are many opportunities to observe distant objects, so there is a high possibility that obstacles will cross, such as 1.). If you were to react more quickly to obstacles, you would end up with binoculars that are very inconvenient to use.

Present invention 1. ．． In view of t: noyo・), 11-,
In order to prevent the automatic focusing mechanism from inadvertently focusing on a distant object, even if an obstacle crosses between the object and the observer while observing a distant object. To provide a telescope that is designed for various purposes.

"For the purpose of In order to achieve the above object, the telescope of the present invention includes a focus detection stage that generates an electric signal corresponding to the amount of light received from an object to be observed (7 image shift of the object to be observed), etc., based on the electric signal. a focus position calculation means for calculating a focusing device that focuses on the observation object using the focus position calculation means; 41ZI+, the focal position calculation means calculates the deviation calculated by the lens position deviation calculation means from the current position.
When there is a predetermined position nearer than the lens position, the
The lens position driving means C5 is configured with a prohibition r stage for prohibiting lens driving.

and further determine whether the current lens position is closer than a predetermined limit value.
Autumn 1- The determining means is the above-mentioned limit 2. 1: Prevent the means from performing the prohibited operation. 4. Also, if the deviation exceeding the predetermined value exceeds the predetermined number of times - consecutively. A second determining means is provided for determining whether or not the detection has been performed, and when the second determining means determines that the detection has been performed consecutively for the predetermined number of times or more, the music record stop-f stage performs the prohibited operation. It may be configured so that there is no such thing.

Furthermore, although the operations of the bait focus detection stage, the focus position calculation means, and the lens position deviation calculation means are performed many times,
C may also be used, so that the prohibition 11- by the prohibition means is not performed during the -th operation.

According to the configuration V, for example λ4, while observing a distant object, the in-focus position of a new object that enters the field of view is closer to the near side than a predetermined value. When this occurs, the inhibiting means is activated, so the lens does not move to the new object's focusing position, and the telescope remains focused on the distant object.

However, when originally looking at a nearby object, that is, when the focus is closer to the predetermined value (in the state of 7, the distance to the new object's focus position is 1), the focus is closer to the predetermined position than the predetermined value. Even if the distance is 7-, the inhibition means will not work, so the new object will be focused on 4.

In addition, if the amount of shift to the in-focus position of a new object that enters the field of view while observing a distant object is shifted toward the near side by more than a predetermined value, then even if - Even when detected, the inhibiting means does not work, and therefore the new object is focused on the bin. - The automatic focusing mechanism is activated.

Further, the operations of the focus detection means, focus position calculation means, and lens position deviation calculation means are performed many times, but if the automatic focusing is configured so that the inhibition by the prohibition means is not performed during the -th operation, the automatic focusing When starting the (autofocus) operation, you can focus on objects at any distance.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 1 shows a plan view of the binoculars of this embodiment.
FIG. 2 shows the front side, and FIG. 3 shows the back side. Here, 2 is an upper cover of a cover forming the housing of the binoculars 1, and 3 is a lower cover. These covers 2.3 are made of synthetic resin moldings. The upper cover 2 includes a slide-type operation member 4 (hereinafter referred to as the "first operation member") for the main switch that turns the power ON and OFF, and a push-type operation member 5 (hereinafter referred to as "rAFJ") switch for the automatic focusing (hereinafter referred to as "rAFJ") switch. On the other hand, the lower cover 3 is provided with a slide-type operation member 6 (hereinafter referred to as the "third operation member") for adjusting the interpupillary distance, and a slide-type operation member 6 for adjusting the diopter. Member 7.8 (hereinafter referred to as “4th
, a fifth operating member) are provided.

Next, 9 is a front cover, and 10 is a rear cover. A transparent glass is attached to the front cover 9, and the first and second tR cylinders 11.12 (fourth
A light-receiving window 20 is provided with first and second objective lenses 13 and 14 respectively attached to the lens (see figure), and a light-receiving lens for AF. Note that the light receiving lens is fixed. In this way, the light receiving window and light receiving lens for ranging are provided separately from the objective lenses 13, 14, etc. of the binoculars, and because they only receive light from the outside,
This distance measuring optical system is of an external light passive type. The vertical length of the light receiving window 20 is selected to be equal to or less than the vertical length of the objective lens 13.14. Therefore, the vertical length (thickness) of the binoculars 1 does not increase due to the presence of the light receiving window 15. The rear cover 10 is provided with eyepiece hoods 10a and 10b made of rubber material.

The optical system structure of a binocularist having the above-mentioned external structure is such that the first and second lens barrels 11 and 12 are arranged on the left and right with the central axis A-A' as the axis of symmetry, as schematically shown in Fig. 4. , an objective lens 13.14 is provided in the first and second lens barrels 11.12.
is in front, prisms 15 and 16 are in the middle, and eyepiece 1
7.18 is located at the rear.

The objective lens 13.14 is attached to the lens barrel 11.1 for AF.
2, while the eyepieces 17.18 can be moved independently of each other in their respective barrels 11.12 for diopter adjustment.

In addition to this embodiment, an embodiment in which the eyepiece lens is moved during AF is also possible. First and second lens barrels 1
1.12 can move toward or away from each other in order to adjust interpupillary distance, as will be described later.

A focus detection module 19 along the central axis A-A'
The focus detection module 19 includes a light receiving lens 20a fixed at the front. In addition,
A stepping motor 22 for AF is provided behind the focus detection module 19, and a reduction gear section 23 for decelerating the operation of this motor 22 and transmitting it to the objective lens 13.14 is connected to the focus detection module 19. and the motor 22. The focus detection module 19 adopts a phase difference detection method as shown in FIG. 5, although it is not particularly limited to this.

In FIG. 5, the field mask SN and the condenser lens LC are arranged near the image formation position by the light receiving lens 20a. The optical axis Z is behind the condenser lens LC.
Re-imaging lenses L1 and L2 are arranged with the axis of symmetry being symmetrical, and a mask plate 24 having openings A1 and A2 is provided in front of these re-imaging lenses L1 and L2. A CCD line sensor 25 is arranged on the imaging plane of each re-imaging lens L1, L2. The condenser lens LC transmits the images of the apertures 11AI and A2 of the mask plate 24 to the light receiving lens 2.
It has the power to form an image at a predetermined position of 0a, and the aperture A
The sizes of 1 and A2 are set so as to allow only the light that passes through an aperture corresponding to a specific aperture value, for example, F5.6, out of the observation object light that passes through the light receiving lens 20a.

Images If, Io, and Ib on the optical axis are each imaged by the light receiving lens 20.
Images of objects Of, Oo, and Ob in front of a are shown. The re-imaging images of these images If, Io1 Ib by the re-imaging lenses Ll, L2 are I If
, 110, Ilb and I2f, I2o, and Ilb. That is, the reference image IO of the observation object OO located at an intermediate distance
The re-imaging image I 1o112o is formed at a position slightly in front of the line sensor 25, and is the image If of the observation object Of located at a far distance.
The re-imaging images 11f and I2f are the re-imaging images 11oS I2o
The re-imaged images 11b and I2b of the image Ib of the observation object ob located in front and close to the optical axis 2 are located at the rear of the re-imaged images 1o and I2o and away from the optical axis Z. tied in the same position. Here, the position of the image by the light-receiving lens 20a corresponds to the distance between the two re-imaged images, and the image interval between the two re-imaged images is determined by the line sensor 25. Near or far distances are determined based on whether the images are longer or shorter than the image spacing, and the amount of image shift is detected based on the difference in the image spacing.

That is, the line sensor 25 is composed of a large number of pixels arranged along the moving direction of the re-imaged image, and these pixels are divided into two areas: a standard part and a reference part. The image interval between the two re-imaged images is detected based on the signals from the reference part and the reference part. This detected image interval is processed by a microcomputer.

Then, the microcomputer uses the processing result to
It is determined whether or not it is in the F state, and the day focus amount is calculated.

Furthermore, compared to active triangulation methods, etc., the phase difference detection method only needs to receive a beam of light in one direction, so it does not require optical spread, and is therefore suitable for placement in the center of binoculars. It can be said that there is.

As for the AF operation method, a system controller (described later) outputs a day focus amount from a predetermined focus position based on the output of the sensor, and drives the motor 22 by the day focus amount (therefore, the objective lens 13, 14 This is an open-loop control method that moves the In this example, since focus detection is performed without going through the objective lenses 13 and 14, the lens is driven by the amount of - times focus detection data to achieve in-focus, and the accuracy in that case is determined by the stepping motor. It is raised by using . However, while the second operating member 5 is being pressed (i.e., the AF
) is continuous A while the switch is on
F is realized. As in this example, the stepping motor
When using this method, it is possible to drive and stop with high precision, so errors do not accumulate, which is also advantageous for continuous AF. Regarding AF, there are one-shot AF and continuous AF, and there is usually a mode button.
Normally, mode switching (that is, switching between one-shot AF and continuous AF) is performed, but in this embodiment, such a special button is not provided, and the button for the AF switch is not provided. 2 by operating the operating member 5 (i.e., depending on whether the observer turns the AF switch OFF after one AF operation or continues to turn the AF switch ON).
We are trying to make that switch.

Returning to Figure 4, the binoculars [approximately the center of 1 (therefore, the first and second
The focus detection module 19, the motor 22, and its reduction gear section 23 installed in the barrel (between the barrels 11 and 12) are vertically sectioned along the central axis A-A' as shown in FIG. . However, the motor 22 and the reduction gear portion 23 are not cut in section in FIG. In the figure, the lens barrel 26 is
Bent in a letter shape, first, second,! @3 reflection mirror Ml, M
2. M3 is arranged as shown in the figure so that the optical axis Z1 of the light receiving lens 20a is below the optical axis Zo of the objective lens, and the optical axis is bent forward and upward by the second reflecting mirror elbow as shown by Z2. The second reflecting mirror M2 bends the optical axis backward as shown by Z3 so that the direction is parallel to Z1, so that the image of the object to be observed by the light receiving lens 20a is formed near the front of the condenser lens LC. As a result, the length of the optical path is substantially increased, and the optical path is made compact.

This is because focus detection accuracy improves when the focal length of the light receiving lens is increased. That is, the amount of lens extension from the infinite position (day focus amount) is expressed as follows: Lens extension amount = f2/(1-f), where f is the focal length of the lens, and 1 is the distance to the object to be observed.

Now f = 30. l = 4 m-”400
At 0m, 302/(4000-30)=0.2
2 Also, f = 60, l = 4 m → 4000 m
When, 602/(4000-60)=0.913
7, and for the phase difference method that calculates the amount of day focus, a lens with a long focal length that causes a large amount of day focus in accordance with the distance to the object is more advantageous in terms of accuracy.

Focus detection module 19, motor 22, reduction gear section 2
A circuit board 27 is arranged above 3. This circuit board 27 is composed of a flexible printed circuit board, and a plan view thereof is shown in FIG. The front wings 28 , 29 of the circuit board 27 are bent and arranged so as to abut the sides of the focus detection module 19 . Specifically, it is partially adhered to the outer side surface of the lens barrel 26 with double-sided adhesive tape or the like to maintain its bent shape. At the rear, a microcomputer 30, a main switch pattern 31, and an AF switch pattern 32 constituting a system controller to be described later are provided. circuit board 27
In addition, many chip components 33 configuring a predetermined circuit are attached to the .

Returning to FIG. 4 again, if a vertical section is taken along approximately the center B-B of the mirror opening 12, it will become as shown at @713Kl. At the bottom of the lens barrel 11, 12, as shown in Figure 1iJ7, a mechanism 34 for adjusting interpupillary distance and a mechanism 35 for adjusting diopter are provided.

These mechanisms are mounted on the base plate 36. 8 is the fifth operating member for adjusting the diopter described above, and 6 is the third operating member for adjusting the interpupillary distance.

As described above, inside the binoculars 1, the circuit board 27 is arranged at the top and the mechanical parts (interpupillary distance adjustment mechanism 34 and diopter adjustment mechanism 35) are arranged at the bottom, which makes the space inside the binoculars Ml more efficient. This makes it easier to use and makes the whole thing more compact. Moreover, since the electrical part and the mechanical part are separated and independent, each part can be easily replaced. For example, when an electrical component on the circuit board 27 fails, the electrical component or the circuit board 27 can be replaced without any modification to the mechanical parts.

Note that, unlike this embodiment, it is also possible to adopt a mode in which the circuit board 27 is placed below and the mechanism part is placed above, but the interpupillary distance adjustment mechanism 34 and the diopter adjustment mechanism 35 may be adjusted once. Then, there is no need to make much adjustment after that, so these mechanical parts that are used less frequently are placed below, as in this embodiment, while the first operating member 4 for the main switch and the AF switch Since frequently used operating members such as the second operating member 5 are arranged on the upper cover 2, it is reasonable to arrange the circuits related to these near (and therefore above). I can say that.

Other than that, AF from the center to the bottom of the lens barrel 11.12
A lens drive mechanism is provided for this purpose. As shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, this AF lens drive mechanism includes the motor 22, a reduction gear section 23 consisting of four gears 01 to G4 that reduce the rotation of the motor 22, and the reduction gear section 23. It consists of a camshaft 37 directly connected to the output gear G4, a lens drive lever 38 driven by the camshaft 37, and the like. A cam groove 39 is formed along the longitudinal direction of the cam shaft 37, and a pin 40 of the lens drive lever 38 is engaged with this cam groove 39. Therefore, when the camshaft 37 rotates, the lens drive lever 38 moves in the C or D direction (FIG. 11).

The lens drive lever 38 has a cylindrical portion 44.45 that is loosely engaged with a pair of guide shafts 42.43 provided on the motor base plate 41, and the guide shaft 42 is connected via the cylindrical portion 44.45.
．． It is supported and guided by 43 and moves stably.

Holes 46.47 are provided at the left and right ends of the lens drive lever 38.
．． Fourteen bins 48,49 are engaged. hole 46.47
is longer in the direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the lens drive lever 38, but this is due to the adjustment of the interpupillary distance between the lens barrels 11 and 1.
This is to allow displacement of 2 in the E direction.

The motor base plate 41 has three support parts 50, 51, 52 extending upward to support the front ends of the guide shafts 42, 43 and the cam shaft 37 at the front, and the motor 22 at the rear. and a support portion 53 for supporting the rear end of the reduction gear portion 23 and the camshaft 37. At the bottom 54 of the motor base plate 41, a pair of spring contact pieces 55, 56 (shown only in FIG. 11, and simplified in FIGS. These contact pieces 55 and 56 form the switch pieces of an infinity switch for detecting the end in the C direction (infinite end), and one of them When the six pieces 57 of the lens drive lever 38 come into contact with the contact piece 55, the contact piece 55
．． 56 are in contact with each other. In FIG. 9, a shaft 62.63 supported by struts 58.59 and 60.61 provided on the base plate 36 is an interpupillary distance guide axis when adjusting the interpupillary distance. Lens barrels 11 and 12 are movably supported in the respective parts. 6
4a to 64d, 65a to 65d are lens barrels 11.12
It is a protrusion that protrudes downward, and the interpupillary distance guide axis 62.6
3 passes through recesses or holes formed in these protrusions.

Next, FIG. 12 shows the circuit system of the binocular [1] of this embodiment. In the figure, 140 is a system controller consisting of a microcomputer. Power supply battery 141
The output voltage (DC voltage) VDDO is applied as a power source to the motor 22 and also to the DC/DC converter unit 142. This DC/DC converter
The unit 142 provides a predetermined output voltage (DC voltage) VDDI to the system controller 140 in response to a PWC signal for power control provided from the system controller 140, and also provides VCCI and VCC2 to the focus detection module 19. Here, vDDl and V
CCI is regulated to 5V and VCC2 is regulated to 12V. Note that the system controller 140 controls the DC/DC converter unit 142 to de-energize VCCI and VCC2 in order to save battery consumption, for example, when the focus detection module 19 is not activated.

143 is a battery check circuit, which checks the output voltage of the battery 141 according to a command from the system controller 140, and sends the result to the system controller 140.
tell to. The details of the battery check circuit are shown in FIG. 32.

The motor drive circuit 144 is operated by a control signal from the system controller 140 and drives the stepping motor 22. 145 is a slide type main switch, 146 is a bush type AF switch, 14
7 is an infinite switch formed of contact pieces 55 and 56 shown in FIG. Reference numeral 148 is a light emitting diode (LED) for warning display, which lights up when the battery check circuit 143 checks and the battery has fallen below a predetermined value or when the object captured by the binoculars has low contrast. to warn. Among the circuits in Figure 12,
A portion indicated by a broken line 200 is provided on a circuit board 27 shown in FIG.

Next, FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the installation and storage part of the battery 141, in which (a) and (b) correspond to FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. A line has been added to the battery area. Note that (C) is a right side view of (a). 150 is a grip consisting of a battery cover 151 attached to the lower cover 3 of the binoculars 1;
1 can be easily held by grasping this grip 150 with fingers. Six batteries 141 are installed inside the grip 150, and the batteries 141 are held by attaching and fixing the battery cover 151 to the lower cover 3. Therefore, battery 1
41 is supported by a battery M151. In order to prevent the battery cover 151 from being accidentally removed from the binoculars 1, the battery cover release switch 1 is pressed as shown in FIG.
It is desirable to provide a switch 152 so that the battery M151 can be removed from the binoculars @1 by operating the switch 152.

FIG. 14 shows a unipolar drive circuit for a stepping mortar. In addition, there is a bipolar type drive circuit as opposed to a unipolar type, but the bipolar type has a different coil winding method than the unipolar type, and the torque is higher than the unipolar type for the same size, but The circuit configuration becomes complicated. However, with the introduction of ICs, the complexity of the bipolar type circuit is no longer considered a problem, so
Recently, it has been used more and more. Of course, a bipolar drive circuit may also be used in this embodiment.

Now, in FIG. 14, the stabbing motor 22 consists of a rotor 400 and four excitation coils L1 to L4, and its drive circuit has an emitter connected to a terminal 401 as shown in the figure.
PNP type transistors Q1 to Q4 connected to a DC power supply through the PNP type transistors and having their bases connected to a motor drive signal source;
Diodes D1 to D4 connected to each collector,
The collectors of transistors Q1 to Q4 are coiled and connected to one end of transistors 1 to L4.

Note that the other ends of the coils L1 to L4 are grounded.

Figure 15 shows the sequence of two-phase excitation in the circuit of Figure 14, with the arrow pointing clockwise.
is), C (J is counterclockwise (counter c
This represents the rotation of the motor to lockweise. When the drive signals φ1 to φ4 are at a low level, the corresponding transistors are turned on and the coils are energized, and when they are at the high level, the transistors are turned off and the corresponding coils are de-energized. In FIG. 15, vertical lines tl,
-... tl corresponds to each 18° rotation angle of the motor.

Now, between t1 and t2, drive signals φ1 and φ2 are at low level, transistors Ql and Q2 are turned on, current flows through coils Ll and L2, two-phase excitation is performed, and the motor rotates. Note that in this specification, rotation of the rotor 400 is referred to as rotation of the motor. The rotation starts at tl, stops at T1 midway, and is in a stopped state from T1 to t2. During the next period t2 to t3, transistors Q2 and Q3 are turned on by drive signals φ2 and φ3, and coils L2 and L3 are turned on.
A current flows through to cause two-phase excitation, and the motor 22 starts again at t2 and stops at T2, and is in a stopped state from T2 to t3. Thereafter, the motor 22 is driven by stepping in accordance with the sequential low level of two of the drive signals φ1 to φ4. t1 to t2, t2 to t3, . . . are equal intervals d, and when this interval d is shortened, the rotation of the motor becomes faster, and when it is lengthened, the rotation of the motor becomes slower.

Figure 16 shows the speed control characteristics of the motor for starting and stopping the motor in a good manner. Ru. In FIG. 16, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents speed (pulse rate). At startup, the speed does not increase all at once in order to generate torque, and the engine output is 300PP.
Start at a speed of S (PPS is the number of pulses per second, called pulse rate), then gradually increase the speed to 600PPS, then 600PPS
rotate at a constant speed. 6 to stop the motor
The speed is gradually reduced from 00PPS to 30opps and then brought to a standstill. The period in which the speed is gradually increased is referred to as an acceleration period, and the period in which the speed is gradually decreased is referred to as a deceleration period. In the motor control of the embodiment described later, for example, when the moving distance of the lens is small, constant speed driving is performed from the beginning without providing an acceleration period.

The driving of the stepping motor has been explained above using the case of two-phase excitation as an example, but the excitation method used in this embodiment does not need to be limited to two-phase excitation, and even one-phase excitation can be used.
Or a mixed method of 1-phase and 2-phase (1-phase to 2-phase excitation method)
Therefore, the excitation sequences for these one-phase excitation force type and one-phase-two-phase excitation are shown in FIGS. 17 and 18.

Further, the characteristics of each of the above methods are briefly explained as follows.

A method in which only one phase is always excited. Although the torque drop is small and the efficiency is good considering the input power is small, the damped vibration during stepping is large and tends to cause disorder, so it is unsuitable when used in a wide range of pulse rates or when vibration is disliked.

211"D9 (method that always excites two phases. Therefore, compared to single-phase excitation, the input power is doubled and the temperature rise is also higher, but it is often used because it provides high torque and has small damped vibration. The step angle is the same as one-phase excitation.

A method that alternately excites one phase and two phases. The input power is 1.5 times that of 1-phase excitation, and the torque is between 1-phase excitation and 2-phase excitation. Since the step angle is 172 for 1-phase or 2-phase excitation, the resolution of the system can be doubled, and the response pulse is also 2
It will be doubled.

Next, the control operation by the microcomputer 30 constituting the system controller 140 in this embodiment will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 19 and subsequent figures.

FIG. 19 shows a general operation flow. In the figure, first, when the battery 141 is installed, a reset operation is performed in each part of the microcomputer 30, and initial settings are made (step #1). This initial setting initializes the input/output board of the microcomputer 30,
This is to initialize data. Turning on the main switch 145 becomes more meaningful after this initial setting. In step #5, main switch 145 is turned on.
However, if it is OFF, the process advances to step #7 and enters a wait (standby) state. That is, although the power is on, the microcomputer 30 is not working. At step #5, the main switch 145 is turned OFF.
If it is determined to be N, the process proceeds to the next battery check routine (#10). Subsequently, in step #15, it is determined whether the battery check result is OK or not. If not, the process proceeds to step #20 and a warning is displayed.

This warning is provided by a light emitting diode (LED) 148. Then, the warning occurs when the main switch 145 is turned off.
This continues for the duration of N (step #25), and no other operations are accepted. When the main switch 145 is turned off, a wait state is entered (step #26). If the determination of the battery check in step #15 is OK (if the battery voltage is sufficient), the lens is moved to the infinity position in the next step #3o. this is,
This is because it is necessary to know the lens position for at least one point, and the infinity position as that one point is the first point.
This is obtained by contacting the switch piece 57 with the switch piece 55 in Figure 1, turning on the infinite switch 147, and then moving from there to a mechanical contact, and subsequent lens driving is performed using this point as a reference. .

After the lens is reset to the infinite position in step #30, the AF switch 146 is turned on in step #35.
It is determined whether or not it is OFF, and if it is OFF, step #4
Go to 0 for auto power off (Auto Pow
er 0FF). Here, in the case of auto power off, in step #41 the APO8
It becomes ET. Conversely, if it is not auto power off, proceed to the next step #45 and turn off the main switch 14.
5 is ON or not. Main switch 145 is OFF
If F, it becomes a wait state (step #46), and O
If N, return to step #35, and AP switch 1
46 is ON. AF switch 146
If is ON, CCD driving (operating COD for distance measurement) is performed in step #50, distance measurement calculation is performed in step #55, and block selection is performed in step #60. Here, the block selection refers to block selection for distance measurement. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22(b), the CCD line sensor for distance measurement has three blocks (first block BLI, It is divided into 2 blocks BL2 and 3rd block BI, 3), and distance measurement calculations (including contrast calculations) are performed for each block.
Therefore, any one block is selected based on the image shift and contrast of each. This makes it possible to choose which object to focus on when viewing competing objects, both far and near.

Next, in step #65, low contrast is determined.

The low contrast judgment here means to judge whether the contrast of the object to be observed is below a predetermined value in all blocks.
This is done based on COD data. When it is determined that the contrast is low, the process proceeds to step #70, where it is determined whether or not the lens should be set at a specific position.If the lens is not set at the specific position, the process proceeds to step #45. When setting to a specific position, set it to the specific position in step #75 and proceed to step #85. The reason for setting the lens at a specific position when using low contrast is because if you detect low contrast many times, you will not know where you are looking. For example, when looking at the horizon,
It is well known from experience that when you move a lens to an infinity position, you can see something. In this embodiment, the specific position is not limited to this particular position, but is assumed to be an infinitely distant position.

In the low contrast determination at step #65, when it is determined that the contrast is not low, the process proceeds to step #80, where the lens extension position is calculated, and the process proceeds to step #85. By the way, in Fig. 19, block selection (step #60)
After that, determine whether all blocks are low contrast (
Although step #65) is performed, low contrast may be determined before block selection, and in fact, in the detailed flowchart described later, low contrast is determined before block selection. Now, step #
At step 85, the number of pulses for driving the motor to the lens extending position is calculated. Next, if the extended position of the lens is within the focusing range, there is no need to drive the motor, so it is determined in step #90 whether motor drive is OK, and if No, the process returns to step #45. If OK, perform a battery check in the next step #95, and then proceed to step #10.
0, it is determined from the battery voltage checked in step #95 whether the motor drive is at its limit. Here, if the motor drive limit is reached, the lens is driven to a specific position in step #110, and then the process advances to step #20, which is a warning display flow.

The reason for driving the lens to a specific position when the motor drive limit voltage is reached is that when the battery is exhausted and the lens cannot be driven, it is easier to use the telescope if the lens is on the far side rather than on the near side. Moreover, it is possible to see a wider range than the near side. Incidentally, it is preferable that the specified position at the time of the above-mentioned low contrast be at infinity, but it is better to set the specified position at the time of battery check slightly closer than infinity in order to cover a wider range. If it is determined in step #100 that the motor drive limit is not reached, the motor is driven in step #105, and then the process returns to step #45.

Note that this flowchart assumes that only two-phase excitation drive is used to drive the stepping motor.
Therefore, step #105 simply drives the motor with two-phase excitation, but an embodiment in which two-phase excitation and one-phase excitation or 1-2-phase excitation are used together is also possible, and the flowchart (steps in FIG. 19) is also possible. Corresponding to #105) is the 20th
and FIG. 21, respectively.

20, the embodiment shown in FIG.
18 magnetic drive is used to reduce the step angle to increase accuracy, and if the amount of lens drive to the in-focus point is large, the lens is first driven at high speed with 2-phase excitation drive with a large step angle, and 1-2 phase excitation drive is performed near the in-focus point. I am trying to switch to excitation.

In addition, the embodiment shown in Fig. 21 reduces battery consumption by slowing down drive with two-phase excitation when starting up, which requires high torque, and switching to one-phase excitation drive with low torque but low current consumption when the load becomes light. I'm trying to reduce it.

First, in the flowchart of FIG. 20, step #11
In step 5, it is determined whether the lens position is near the in-focus point, and if it is not near the in-focus point, the process proceeds to step #120 to perform two-phase excitation drive, and as a result, it is determined again in step #125 whether or not the lens position is near the in-focus point. do. In the end, step #12
0 and #125 realize two-phase excitation up to the vicinity of the in-focus point. If it is determined in step #115 or #125 that the focal point is near, proceed to step #130 and turn the motor 1.
- Drive with two-phase excitation. And next step #135
It is determined whether the focused point has been reached, and if NO, the process returns to step #130 to continue 1-2 phase excitation, and if YES, the motor is stopped in step #140.

do.

Next, in the flowchart of FIG. 21, step #150
If it is not near the focused point, slow-up drive is performed with two-phase excitation in step #155, and then constant-speed drive is performed with one-phase excitation in the next step #16o. As a result, it is determined whether it has come near the in-focus point (step #165), and if No here, the process returns to step #160 to continue constant speed driving by one-phase excitation. If Yes, slow down drive with 1-2 phase excitation Step #1
70), the in-focus point has been reached, but it is difficult to determine whether or not the focus point has been reached, step #17
5L If the focal point has not been reached, the 1-2 phase excitation drive in step #170 is continued. When the focal point is reached, the process proceeds to step #18o and the motor is stopped. In step #15o above, if it is near the in-focus point, step #18
5 and step #19o, the motor is driven with 1=2-phase excitation until the focused point is reached, and when the focused point is reached, the process proceeds to step #180 and the motor is stopped.

Next, the operation shown in FIG. 19 will be explained in detail according to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 23 and subsequent figures.

When the batteries are installed in the binoculars, the reset routine shown in FIG. 23 is executed and initial settings are made in step #200. Various operations are performed as an initial setting, but to explain only the typical ones shown in the figure, first, the DC/
P that controls the DC comparator unit 142
DAM used to set the WC terminal to O or drive the motor described later
to O, initialize the timer, and set the fast AF flag FSTAF.

When the above-mentioned initial settings are completed, it is determined in step #205 whether the main switch 145 is ON or not. If the main switch 145 is OFF, step #2 is performed.
The process proceeds to the operation flow described in steps #10 to #220, that is, the flow for setting the WIT state. First, in step #210, among the ports in the microcomputer 30, the output port to which the motor 22 and the LKDi 48 are commonly connected is turned off. Next, step #2
At step 15, the clock frequency is switched. Specifically, drop from a high speed Glock to a low speed clock.

Further, in step #220, the DC/DC converter unit 142 is stopped and the WIT state is entered (step #225). In this WIT state, the microcomputer 30 is emitting a clock at a low frequency, but at a high frequency. Compared to the case where Glock is emitted by frequency, power consumption is less.

Returning to step #205 above, main switch 145
When is ON, the process advances to step #230, where a battery check is performed, and then, at step #235, the result of the battery check is determined. Here, if the result of the battery check is negative, a warning is issued by blinking the LED 148 (step #240).

At this time, the blinking frequency of LE0148 is not particularly limited to this, but it is 2) (z.Then, the warning by this LED blinking can be seen from step #245 if the main switch 145 is ON. When the main switch 145 is turned OFF, the process proceeds from step #245 to step #210, and the above-mentioned WIT
Execute the operational flow that enters the state.

Next, when it is determined in step #235 that the battery check result is OK, the process proceeds to step #250, where the first AF flag and battery check flag are set. When this is completed, infinite ((X)) reset is performed in step #260. For this infinite reset, if you don't know where the lens is at the beginning, you won't be able to determine how to move the lens later, so after turning on the main switch, move the lens to the specified position (infinity). Since this routine is shown in FIG. 29, it will be explained later with reference to FIG. After the infinite reset is completed, the count of timer 2 is set in step #265, which means setting the time to enter APO (auto power off) 1sET, which will be described later.

Next, in step #270, it is determined whether or not the AF switch 146 is ON, and if it is ON, the S O shown in FIG.
Proceed to routine N, and if OFF, step #280
The first AF flag is set. After that, in step #285, move count MOVgCN
Make T 8φH. Thereafter, in step #290, it is determined whether or not the timer 2 has counted up. If it has counted up, the routine of APO3ET is entered (step #295).

APO8ET is basically the same as the wait state, but differs in the following points. That is, in the wait state, time passes in the same state, but in APO3ET, the circuit is set to move at regular intervals.

Specifically, if the main switch 145 is ON and the AF switch 146 is not pressed for 15 seconds, the clock frequency is lowered to save power consumption, and
The DC/DC converter unit 142 is stopped. After exiting this APO3ET routine, the process returns to step #265.

If it is determined in step #290 that the timer 2 has not counted up, the process proceeds to the next step #300, where it is determined whether the main switch 145 is ON or not. If the main switch 145 is OFF, the wait state is (Step #305). If the main switch is ON, the process returns to step #270 and executes the subsequent flow.
When timer 2 counts up, it enters APO8ET, and the main switch turns OFF before timer 2 reaches the count up.
When it becomes FF, it means entering a wait state.

Next, the SON routine shown in FIG. 24 will be explained. This SON routine is the main routine in this binocular. First, in step #400, it is determined whether the first AF flag is set. If the first AP flag is set in step #400, the first AF flag is reset in step #405, and then in step #410,
Initialize the CCD (input certain data, perform integration and data dump in a simulated manner, and stabilize subsequent CCD data). After this initialization of the COD is completed, the CCD is driven. The initialization is performed when the first AF flag is set in step #400, that is, when the AF switch 146 is turned from FF to OFF.
Since the first AF flag is in a reset state after that, the process directly proceeds to step #415, CCD driving, without going through the initialization routine. CCD driving consists of an integration operation in which photocharges are accumulated for a predetermined period of time, and a data dump operation after the integration is completed.

When CCD driving is completed, distance measurement calculation is performed in step #420. This distance measurement calculation includes a calculation for calculating the amount of image deviation between the standard part and the reference part on the CCD, and the three blocks BLI, BL2, BL2, BL2, BL1, BL1, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL1, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL1, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL2, BL1, BL1, BL2. BL3 (Figure 22(b)
), and a contrast calculation for detecting the individual contrasts of (see ). Here, the standard part and the reference part on the CCD are provided in software for each block in the phase difference detection method for calculating the amount of deviation (day focus amount). Of the two images separated and formed in the line direction by the system, one corresponds to the standard part and the other corresponds to the reference part.

When the distance measurement calculation is completed, the low contrast flag is reset in step #425, and then the low contrast determination routine is entered. Step #43 of the low contrast determination routine
0 has three blocks BLI, BL2. It is determined whether or not all of BL3 are in low contrast, and if all three blocks are in low contrast, the low contrast flag is set in step #435, and then low contrast processing begins (step #44).
0), this low contrast processing will be explained according to the flow shown in FIG. When entering low contrast flow LOCOH,
First, in order to check how many times the low contrast has been counted, the count number of the low contrast counter is incremented by 1 in step #5000.

After that, the process proceeds to step #5100, and it is determined whether the set number of times LCONNO minus the count number is O. If it is not 0, the LED 148 is turned on in step #5400 to issue a warning. Go to MSWO. If it is 0, step #520
Set the low-con count to 0 at 0 and proceed to the next step #53
After executing a low control reset routine (see FIG. 28, which will be described later) at 00, it becomes MPCAAL. Second MPC
AL proceeds to step #550 (FIG. 24). Further, the MSWO returns to step #300 through step #310 (FIG. 23).

In step #430 of Fig. 24, 3 blocks BLI
, BL2. If any one of BL3 is not in low contrast, the process proceeds to step #445 to determine whether or not the second block BL2 is in low contrast. If the second block BL2 is not in low contrast, the process proceeds to step #460. Select the second block BL2 with (Second block BL2
). If the second block BL2 is low contrast in step #445, the next step #450
Proceed to and determine whether the first block BLI is low contrast.
Here, if the first block BLI is low contrast, three blocks BLI, BL2. Since only the third block BL3 among BL3 is not in low contrast, the third block BL3 is selected in step #470.

However, if the first block BLI is not in low contrast at step #450, +XMI-X is determined at step #455.
Determine whether MMI >l 1M3-XMMI, Yl
! , S, the process proceeds to step #470 and selects the 1fI3 block BL3, and if No, the first block BLI is selected in step #465. Here, XMl represents the amount of deviation of the first block BLI measured this time, 1M3 represents the amount of deviation of the third block BL3 measured this time, and XMM represents the amount of previous deviation (the amount of deviation corresponding to the current lens position). .

As described above, in this embodiment, there are three blocks BLI.

Bll, 2. Priority is given to the second block BL2 of BL3, but this is because in the case of binoculars, as shown in FIG. The central block within, i.e.
It is reasonable to give priority to the distance measurement data of the second block BL2. If the second block BL2 has a low contrast, this embodiment adopts the distance measurement data of the first block BLI or the third block BL3, whichever has a smaller deviation from the current lens position. (Steps #450 to #470).

After block selection has been performed as described above, which block has been selected is stored in memory (step #
475). If a block is selected, it means that it is not low contrast, so the low contrast warning LED
is turned OFF (step #480).

Now, as shown in Figure 31, it is possible to extend the lens from the infinity position (1) to a position of 2 m, but the direction of deviation indicates which side it has deviated from 4 m, which is the midpoint of the extended amount. After the flag is reset in step #485, it is determined in the next step #490 whether the deviation amount XM is positive or negative. Here, the focus detection module is 4m
It is set so that the amount of deviation is O when measuring the distance of
side) is plus (+), and the infinity side is (-). When XM is (-), a shift direction flag is set in step #500. Therefore, when this flag is set, it indicates that the distance is more than 4 meters to infinity. After setting the deviation direction flag in step #500, step #505 sets C-DFK as DFKM.
M of M indicates that it is negative (therefore, it is on the infinity side). In step #490, xM is (+)
If it is the DFK side, in step #495
KP and Nasu. Here, P of DFKP indicates that it is positive (therefore, it is near).

After step #495 or step #505, the process proceeds to step #510, where the value obtained by multiplying the amount of deviation XM by DFK is set as the number of deviation pulses DF. Here, DFK is a constant that converts the amount of deviation XM into the number of pulses (the number of motor drive pulses). Next, in step #515, it is determined whether the plug in the sliding direction is set or reset. When this shift direction flag is set (that is, when it is 1), it means that the shift is towards infinity (-) as mentioned earlier, so proceed to step #520 and move to the target position. Substitute (SP-DF) as the pulse number TP. SP is the number of pulses from the infinite position to the reference position of 4 m, as shown in FIG. Step #52
After 0, the process proceeds to step #525, where it is determined whether the TP is smaller than 0 or not. If TP is smaller than O, set TP to O in step #530, then step #55
Proceed to 0, and if it is 0 or more, continue to step #550
Proceed to. In this way, it is determined whether TP is smaller than O in step #525, and if it is smaller, TP is changed to step #5.
The COD that detects the amount of deviation is limited to O at 30.
This is to prevent malfunction of the motor drive due to such defects, since TP may become less than O due to the influence of noise etc.

When the shift direction flag is not set in step #515 (that is, when it is O), it means that the shift is toward the near side (+), so as can be seen from FIG. 31, the target position pulse number TP is the value (S
P+DF) (step #535).

Subsequently, in step #540, it is determined whether or not this TP is greater than TPMAX. If TP>TPMAX, step #545 limits TP to TPMAX and then proceeds to step #550, and TP≦TPI'! If it is AX, do nothing and proceed to step #550. Here, TPMAX represents the number of feeding pulses up to the maximum point of the feeding amount, that is, the point of 2 m.

The operations after step #550 are not only performed following each of the above-mentioned steps, but also when there is an MPCAL. First, in step #550, the motor drive mode MMD is set to O, and in the next step #555, the number of drive pulses MP is set to (TP-NP). This (TP-N
P) represents the number of pulses from the current position to the target position. Subsequently, in step #56o, it is determined whether the drive pulse number MP is negative or not, and if it is negative, the next step #5 is performed.
At 65, (NP-TP) is taken as the key, and step #570
Set X, which indicates whether it is plus or minus from the current position, to 1.
shall be. If MP is positive in step #560, X is set to O in step #575. In the above explanation, M
P, TP, NP18P, etc. are actually RAM address names, and X is a CPU register name.

Note that the contents of this register X indicate whether it is plus or minus with respect to the current position in step #625, which will be described later, but it is used for various other purposes in the flow described later.

After step #570 or step #575,
Proceeding to step #580, the number of focus zone pulses GZP is subtracted from the number of drive pulses MP. Then, check whether the result of the subtraction is positive or negative in step #58.
If it is negative, the amount of deviation is within the in-focus zone, so the motor is not moved. That is, in this case, proceed to step #590, set MOVRCNT for counting the number of designated motor drive pulses to O, and proceed to step #595 (battery check time).
Determine the reset flag, and if it is set, reset this flag in step #600 and proceed to step #
The process advances to 605 to set BCNG, and if it is not set, the process advances to step #610 to perform MSWO. MSw
Step #310 of Figure 23 After setting timer 2, proceed to step #300.

On the other hand, in the BCNG, the process returns to step #24o and a warning is displayed. In step #585 (MP-GZP
) is determined to be positive, it means that the amount of deviation is greater than the in-focus point, so step #615
The routine moves to execute the motor drive routine MOVE. This routine MOVE will be explained in detail with reference to FIG.

In the flow shown in FIG. 25, it is first determined in step #620 whether or not there is a preset flag in the register. If there is a preset flag here, the process jumps to step #655 to unconditionally move the motor, but if there is no preset flag, the process jumps to step #655. If so, proceed to step #625. Examples of the preset flag include a low contrast reset flag. In step #625, it is determined whether the direction of the shift is toward infinity (1) or nearer to the current position. This determination is made based on whether the above-mentioned X is X=1 or X=0. Here, when X=1 (that is, when the direction of deviation X indicates the infinity side with respect to the current position), the process advances to step #655 to drive the motor. However, when X=o (that is, when the direction of deviation is near the current position), the current position is set to a predetermined limit value (LIMIT) in step #630.
Determine whether or not it exceeds. Here, if the current position exceeds a predetermined limit value and is near, it means that the observer was looking nearby beforehand, and an object passed nearby while looking far away. Since this is not the case, the process proceeds to step #655 to move the motor.

However, in step #630, even if the current position (NP) is near, if it is at or below the predetermined limit value (LIMIT), the process proceeds to step #635 and calculates GZPX2, which is twice the focus zone. Then, in step #640, the number of pulses MP to the target position is set to a predetermined value.
Determine whether ZPX is 2 or less. And GPZ X
When 2≧MP, step #655 to drive the motor.
However, when GPZX2<MP, that is, the amount of movement to the target position is a predetermined value (GPZ
If the deviation exceeds X2), the count MOVECNT indicating the number of distance measurements is incremented by 1 in step #645, and it is determined in the next step #650 whether the count value exceeds a predetermined number of times. Here, MOVEN
O2 is a constant indicating the predetermined number of distance measurements. The predetermined number of times is not limited to this, but three or four times are selected.

If the number of distance measurements is less than the predetermined number in step #650,
Proceed to MSWO and do not move the motor. However, if the predetermined number of times is exceeded, step #655 is taken to move the motor.
Proceed to. This is because if the deviation in step #645 is more than a predetermined value, there is a high possibility that something has crossed between the observer and the object to be observed, so as a general rule, the motor will not be moved.
When this state of deviation is detected a predetermined number of times, there is a high possibility that the observer intentionally looked at something nearby, which means that the motor should be moved.

Now, in step #655, the low contrast reset flag is reset. As mentioned earlier, the low contrast reset flag is a flag that is set when moving the lens to a specific position during low contrast.
This is a flag for jumping from 5 to #650, and since its role has been completed, it is reset here. Next, in step #660, the count value of the distance measurement counter is set to 0. Subsequently, in step #665, data indicating the direction of deviation present in register X is input into register A in order to confirm the motor drive direction. In the next step #670, the current direction A (contents of register A) is subtracted from MHF indicating the direction before distance measurement (rotation direction at the previous time) regarding the motor rotation direction flag MHF, and in step #675 The current direction A is set to HF as the rotation direction flag. Next, step #68o
After resetting the flag (BCH flag) indicating that backlash correction has been performed in step #685, the MHF
- Determine whether A=0. Here, if the value is O (i.e., the same direction as the previous time), proceed to step #700, and if it is not 0 (i.e., the direction is opposite to the previous time), proceed to step #69.
When set to 0, the backlash correction value (BC) I) is stored in the register BC.
COUNT and set step #695teBCH7 lag. Steps #685 to #695 are a flow for correcting in advance the backlash caused by backlash when the motor rotates in the opposite direction to the previous time. This is because when the motor rotates in the opposite direction, backlash of the gears causes play, causing the motor to idle despite the presence of pulses, so a backlash correction value is added to the number of pulses.

Next, in step #700, the number of pulses for acceleration and deceleration of the motor is set. This corresponds to the acceleration period (in terms of mode, MMD=O
) and the number of pulses to be used for the deceleration period (MMD=2). Here, the acceleration period and the deceleration period are set to the same number of pulses VPN, and twice that number (VPNX 2
) to obtain the total number of pulses in the acceleration period and deceleration period. After this step #7゜O, step #7o
Proceed to step 5 and enter the maximum pulse rate as the initial value in pulse rate NPR. in particular,! 3 which is the first pulse rate of the acceleration period of the speed control characteristic of the motor in Figure 16.
Enter the value to make 00pps. Next, in step #71o, 1 is added to the total number of pulses in the acceleration period and deceleration period.
It is determined whether the number of pulses MP to the target point is smaller than the sum of (VPNX2+1). The key point in FIG. 16 is the number of pulses corresponding to the period from the starting point to the stopping point of the motor. With this judgment, it is more MP than (VPNX2+1)
If it is small, the process advances to step #715 and MD is set to 3 in motor drive mode. An MMD of 3 means that the distance from the current position to the next one is short, so the vehicle is driven at low speed from the beginning. On the other hand, if MP is (VP)l
X2+1) or more, in step #72o the previous M
The key point here is the value obtained by subtracting the acceleration VPN from P.

After step #715 and step #72o, motor drive data is set in step #725 or step #73o. First, in step #725, data at address DAM in RAM is put into register
rxi display drive data) into register A. After that, it is determined in step #735 whether the low contrast flag is set or not, and when the low contrast flag is set (the flag is 1), the microcomputer 30 to which the LED 148 and the motor 22 are commonly connected is determined in step #74o. Noboto Abit5woO (OGet Le Jnie,
LED 148 is enabled) and step #
Proceed to 745, and if the low contrast flag is not set (the flag = 0), do nothing, and therefore A bit 5 is set to 1.
Proceed to step #745 with the motor remaining in an operable state. In step #745, the contents of register A are given to motor drive data output P5.

Next, in step #750, it is determined whether the battery check flag is set (that is, whether or not the battery is checked when the motor is being driven). In this way, determining whether or not to check the battery when driving the motor is as follows:
In this embodiment, instead of checking the battery every time the motor is driven while the AP switch 146 is OK,
This is because this battery check is performed only when the F switch 146 is turned from OFF to ON. That is, first, to explain the case where the AP switch 146 is turned on from OFF, step #23o in FIG.
A battery check is performed at step #250, and if the result is OK, a battery check flag is set at step #250. When the AF switch 146 is turned on in this state, the S ON routine starts from step #270.
In the determination of the battery check flag in step #750, it is determined that the battery check flag is set, so a battery check is performed in the subsequent step #760. Then, when this battery check is completed, steps #770 and #785 are performed regardless of whether the battery check result is negative or OK.
The battery check flag is reset. Even if the AF switch 146 continues to be turned on in this state (that is, even if it is determined that the AF switch 146 is ON in step #270), the battery check flag remains in the reset state, so the process returns to step #750. Even if the battery check occurs, step #760 of the battery check will be skipped, and the battery check will not be performed. Next, if the AF switch 146 is in the OFF state, step #270
The process advances to step #280, and as the timer 2 counts up, the APO8ET routine is entered.
Since the PO8ET routine sets the battery check flag, the AF switch 14 is set again.
6 is turned ON, and as a result, the routine enters the SON ON routine at step #270, and when step #75o is reached, it is determined that the battery check flag is set, and a battery check is performed.

As described above, when the AF switch 146 is turned from OFF to ON, a battery check is performed when the motor is driven, and when the AF switch 146 is in an ON state other than that, a battery check is not performed when the motor is driven.

As a result of the determination in step #750, if the battery check flag is not set, the process proceeds to step #79o, and if it is, the process proceeds to step #755 and waits for 1 ms. This weight is determined by the signal φ1 in the circuit of FIG.
This is because when any two of φ4 are set to low level and a current is passed through the coil, the voltage fluctuates immediately after the current is applied, so the purpose is to wait for the voltage to stabilize. Otherwise, the potentials of the five points taken out for the battery check will also vary, making it impossible to expect an accurate battery check. After waiting for the voltage to stabilize in step #755, a battery check is performed in step #760. Then, the check result is determined in step #765, and if the battery check result is negative, the battery check flag is reset in step #770, and after executing the battery check reset routine in the next step #775, the MP
It becomes CAL.

Here, the routine for battery check and specific position reset at low power will be explained with reference to FIG. First, when checking the battery, set a battery check reset flag to move the lens to a specific position in step #3000, and then set the TP in step #3050.
Input the specific position BCTP at the time of battery check as . When the contrast is low, a low contrast reset flag is set in step #3100. The process then proceeds to step #3200, where the specific position LCTP at the time of low contrast is entered as TP. If these specific positions are at infinity, TP
TP=0, and if it is 50 m, the corresponding number of pulses will be obtained. Next, in step #3300, focus range G
Narrow ZP to 5 pulses and return. The purpose of narrowing the focusing range GZP at the specific position in step #3300 is to make it easier to reach the specific position. That is,!
According to steps #820 and #825 of the '10VE flow, the in-focus zone is set wide in advance on the infinity side, so when the lens is brought to a specific position in this specific position reset routine, the wide in-focus zone is If there is a lens inside, the lens will not move and will not reach the target point, so in this routine focus box II (zone)
is set narrowly. In this embodiment, GZP is set to 5 pulses, but it is natural to set it smaller than GZMAX, which will be described later, and if it is set smaller than GZMIN, the effect of specific position reset will be greater.

Returning to FIG. 25, if the battery check result is OK in step #765, the battery check flag is reset in step #785, and then step #790
1.5m5ec weight. This weight is used to widen the width of the first pulse when driving the motor. It should be noted that by widening the width of the initial pulse in this way, it is possible to enjoy the advantage that torque can be easily obtained at the time of starting the motor.

Next, in step #795, the contents of address DAM in RA are put into register X. After tightening, step #8゜O
and run the motor drive routine. After this motor drive routine is completed, it is determined in step #805 whether or not the battery check reset flag is set. This flag is a flag that is set when going to a specific position during a battery check. As a result of the above judgment, if this flag is set, the armpit flag is reset in step #810, and then BCNG is set.

However, if the battery check reset flag is not set in step #805, the focus zone is calculated in steps #820 and #825. Specifically, the focus zone is changed depending on the distance to the object to be observed. That is, although the focus zone (focus range) differs depending on the person and age, in general, in nature, the farther the distance, the lower the contrast. This increases the variation in distance measurement data, and there is a possibility that the lens may be driven inadvertently (hunting phenomenon). To prevent this, the in-focus zone is made wider as it goes farther away depending on the distance to the object to be observed.

MP corresponds to the current position, and GZK indicates the slope of the focusing zone characteristic shown in FIG. 36. The GZK is calculated from the relationship shown in Fig. 36, from the focusing zone GZMAX at infinity, the focusing zone GZMIN at the near position, and TPMAX corresponding to the distance between the infinity and near positions, GZK = (GZMAX - GZMIN) /TPMAX
It is.

In step #820, NP and GZK are multiplied, and in step #825, GZ<71 maximum GZMAX and NPXGZK
The focal zone GZP is determined by calculating the difference between the two.

This concludes the main flow. Next, step #8 above
The motor drive routine at 00 will be explained with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 26, first, in step #900, motor drive data MDATAO,X is input into register A of the CPU.

DATAO shows the motor drive data in Figure 33, and
represents the number of the data. After that, in step #905, the contents of register A are read to the output port P5, and in step #91O, the contents of the register A are read out to the output port P5, and the RAM address D is read out in step #91O.
Put the contents of register X into AM.

Next, in step #915, it is determined whether the infinity flag is set. This infinity flag is NUGE shown in Figure 29.
This is a flag that becomes 1 when the H routine is passed. When the infinity flag is set, the process proceeds to step #920, where it is determined whether or not the infinity switch 147 is ON. If it is ON, the mode MMD is set to 5 in step #930.

MMD5 is a mode in which the lens drives the motor at a constant speed after turning on the infinite switch 147. Next, in step #935, constant speed drive rate MR8PR is entered into register A. Note that this constant speed drive rate MR5PR is, for example, 4o.
Let's say opps. Step #9 after step #935
Proceed to 40. If the infinity flag is not set in step #915, or if the infinity switch is OFF in step #920, the initial value of the counter is stored in register A in step #925, and then the process proceeds to step #940.

In step #940, the contents of register A are transferred to register R5.
Put it in. Incidentally, the counter counts down and when the count value is O, time-up occurs. Step #945 is a timer subroutine, specifically the operation of waiting for the time-up. In other words, see what the rate is. Then, create a time according to that pulse rate.

Next, in step #950, the direction flag M)IF for the current position is determined. Here, if MHF indicates the infinite side, it is determined in step #970 whether or not X=O. Now, assuming that the motor drive data has a relationship as shown in Figure 33, when MHF = 1, X changes from 3 to 2 to 1.
→ It changes in the order (direction) of 0 → 3, so step #97
0, it is determined whether or not X=0, and if X=0, it is set as X=3. If x=0 in step #970, set X-1 to X.

On the other hand, when M, HF=O, X is O → 1 → 2 → 3
→ Since it changes depending on the order (direction) of O, if KHF is on the near side (-○) in step #950, it is determined in step #955 whether or not X=3, and if x=3, then X=O. Step #965), if X=3, set X+l to X (
Step #960).

After setting X (that is, the data indicating the number in register X) as described above, step #985
It is determined whether the backlash flag (BCH flag) is set. Here, if this BCI (flag is set), the count value of the backlash counter is decremented by 1 in step #990, and it is determined whether the value of the backlash counter has become 0 in the next step #995. However, if it is not 0, the process returns to the first step #900 of this routine, and if it is 0, the BCH flag is reset in step #1000.

In this backlash correction routine, constant speed driving is performed at the minimum pulse rate (low speed). The reason for this is that during backlash correction, the drive is in an idling state with no load applied, causing the drive to become idling.When backlash correction is finished and the backlash disappears, the load suddenly increases and there is a risk of step-out, so the drive is driven at a pulse rate with high torque. This is because it is necessary to do so.

If the BCH flag is not set in step #985, the mode MMD is set to M in step #1005.
It is determined whether MD=5. If MMD=5,
In step #1010, the counter value MC0UNT corresponding to the drive pulse of distance W in FIG. 34 is decremented by 1, and in the next step #1015, it is determined whether the count value is 0 or more. If it is 0 or more, the process returns to the first step #900 of this routine. If it is less than 0, the infinity flag is reset in step #1020, and then the routine proceeds to a motor stop routine.
In reality, it is desirable that C0UNT be set to a value greater than or equal to the number of pulses corresponding to the distance W. This is because when the infinite switch 147 is turned on, the distance W is considered to vary relatively due to variations in the strokes of the switch pieces. In addition, by setting the number of pulses to be larger than the number equivalent to W in this way, the lens system can be mechanically hit 403 (
Even if it comes into contact with the support portion 53 (described as the support portion 53 in the explanation of FIGS. 9 to 11), a gear clutch acts on the lens system to prevent damage. By the way, when bringing the lens position to infinity as the reference position, instead of setting it at the 08 point of the infinity switch 147, it is more reliable and more reliable to proceed further from the 08 point and bring it to the mechanical hit 403. This is due to the intention that the accuracy is high.

Therefore, if reliability and accuracy can be satisfied with a switch, the motor may be stopped by turning on the switch, and its position may be set to the infinite position. This will make it easier to control and
Moreover, the gear clutch described above can also be omitted.

If MMD=5 is not determined in step #1005, it is determined whether MMD=3 in step #1025, and MMD
If =3, distance MPL to move in step #1030
Decrement by 1 and next step #1035
It is determined whether MPL<O. If MPL≧0 here, return to the first step #900 of this routine,
When MPL<0, the routine proceeds to a motor stop routine. In this case, since the distance is short, the data is stored in register MP.
Since it is present only in the lower 8 bits of the bit, it is called MPL (L indicates lower).

If MMD=3 is not found in step #1025, the process proceeds to step #1040 to determine whether MMD=2. (2) D=2 corresponds to the deceleration period as explained earlier.

If MMD=2, do nothing and proceed to step #10
Proceed to 65, but here, if MMD = 2, MMD =
1 or MMD=0, so step #
In step 1045, IIIP is decremented by 1, and in the next step #1050, it is determined whether the HP is 0 or more. Then, if liver <0, it means that the mode changes from MMD=1 to MMD=2, so step #10
55, MMD=2, and step #1060, MMD
The number of pulses VPNR at MC=2 is (VPNR+1
). This is because the number of pulses will be one less during the deceleration period, and if this continues, the subsequent determination in step #1075 will be incorrect, so one is added here in advance. If the mode changes to MMD=2 in step #1055, or if MMD=2 originally (if Yes in step #1040), a predetermined value VPR is added to the current pulse rate in step #1065. Let the pulse rate be the pulse rate.

This is because when MMD=2 (ie, the deceleration portion), the pulse width is gradually widened as shown in FIG. 35(b) in order to slow down the rotational speed of the motor.

In the next step #1070, the determined number of pulses is changed to 1.
The number of pulses is determined by subtracting 1 from the VPNR because the pulses are deagremented each time. And the number of pulses is O
It is determined in step #1075 whether the value has become 0 or not, and if it has not become 0, the process returns to the first step #900. When the number of pulses reaches O, the motor stop flow (MSTOP
).

If P is 0 or more in step #1050, it means that the mode has not changed, so step #1050 is performed.
Proceeding to 1080, it is determined whether the mode MMD is MMD=0 (that is, acceleration period), and if MMD=0, the process returns to the first step #900, executes the flow from step #900, and finally Step #105 above
0 to step #1055. However, if MMD=0 in step #1080, the predetermined value V is calculated from the current pulse rate in step #1085.
The pulse rate is obtained by subtracting the FR. This is because in the case of acceleration, the width of the pulse is gradually narrowed as shown in FIG. 35(a). In the next step #1090, the number of pulses is decremented by 1, and in step #1095 it is determined whether the value has become O. If it has not become O, return to the first step #900. For example, in step #1100, the next mode MMD=
1 and returns to the first step #900.

Next, in 5TOP of the motor stop routine, the motor mode is set to MMD=0 in step #1105.

This is because when the motor is driven again after it has stopped, it should be in the initial state (MMD=0). Next, in step #1110, a wait of 3 m5ec is performed, but this is to ensure a long pulse width when stopping the motor as well as when starting (starting) the motor, so that the motor can be stopped smoothly. Thereafter, the motor is stopped in step #1115. Specifically, all the microcomputer motor drive output ports are set to high level (therefore, φ1=φ2=
φ3=φ4=1). Finally, in step #1120, TP is set to NP. This means that the lens has come to the target position (TP) and stopped, so now it is time to move to the target position (TP).
) should be the current position (NP).

Next, the operational flow of the battery check will be explained with reference to FIG. 27. First, in step #2000, the BCG terminal of the microcomputer is set to low level. As a result, the transistor Q5 of the battery check circuit shown in FIG.
2. The voltage generated at the connection midpoint J of R3 changes (increases),
Not constant. Therefore, in step #2005, sufficient time is waited for the charging of the capacitor C1 to be completed.

After that, the measured data is stored in the RAM (upper byte CAL, H, lower byte CAL.

Clear L) and put 8 in register X of cpo to set 8 times as the number of measurements (step #202
0). Then, in step #2025, register A is set to 0.
After that, in step #2030, an A/D converter is used to convert the voltage obtained from the five points in FIG. 32 and input into the microcomputer 30 from an analog quantity to a digital quantity.
Start the conversion operation. And next step #
After waiting for the A/D conversion operation to be completed in step 2035, the next step #'2040 sets the carry flag CY to 0, and in step #2045, data ADRR indicating voltages at five points is added to register A. The contents of register A are newly set. After this addition, step #2051
The carry flag CY is determined. In other words, the result of addition is
If there is an overflow, CY=1, and the process proceeds to the next step #2052, where CAL and H are incremented. This data addition involves adding up eight measured values one by one. In step #2055, the numerical value X related to the number of measurements is decremented by 1. Then, in the next step 12060, it is determined whether or not X has become O, and 0
If not, the process returns to step #2030 and the operations from step #2030 onward are repeated. Then, when the operations from step #2030 onward are performed eight times, X becomes 0, and the process proceeds to step #2062, where the value of register A is placed in CAL, L. This value is the lower byte of the summed measurement value. Next, the process advances to step 12065 and the terminal BCG of the microcomputer 30 is set to BCG=1(
i.e., at a high level). Therefore, transistor Q
5 is turned off, and the voltage at the 5 points decreases as the charge of the capacitor C1 is discharged, and finally reaches the ground potential (initial state).

In step #2070, the total value of data is divided by 8 and stored in register A in order to calculate an average from the total value of 8 times. Note that (CAL-H) and (CAL-L) indicate the upper and lower bytes as shown in steps #2010 and #2015. Step #207 like this
The data calculated in step #2075 is transferred from register A to RAM address ANODATA. Next, in step #2080, the amount X to be added to the battery check reference value is set to zero.

Next, it is determined in step #2085 whether or not the battery check flag is set, and if this flag is set, the amount to be added is set to X=0.2 in step #2090.
If the user is not standing, the process proceeds to step #2095 without doing anything. This is because the reference value for determination is different depending on whether the battery check flag is set or not.

In step #2095, the reference value is subtracted from the data A, and in the next step #2100, it is determined whether the subtraction result is smaller than O or not. Here, whether or not it is smaller than 0 naturally means determining whether or not A<(E-BCLK+X). Note that E-BCLK is, for example, 4·OV, and the amount to be added is X=0.2V. Therefore, when the BC flag is not set, the reference value is 4. O
However, if the BC flag is set, it becomes 4.2v. Here, the standard value 4. OV is the limit value at which the motor can be driven, and the battery voltage is 4. If it is smaller than Ov, the motor cannot be driven. Therefore, the standard value 4. 0.2V from OV
When the battery voltage drops to a reference value of 4.2V, which is the sum of The reason why the reference value of 4.2V is provided is to leave enough voltage to at least move the lens to a specific position before the motor becomes impossible to drive. Since the BC flag was not set during the battery check when the main switch was turned from OFF to ON (step #230 in Figure 23), the standard value was 4. The average voltage of the 8 times detected is 4. A battery check is performed to see if it is smaller than Ov. On the other hand, the battery check (during AF operation (motor drive))
In step #760) of FIG. 25, since the BC flag is set, the reference value is 4.2V, and a battery check is performed to see if the average voltage detected eight times is smaller than this reference value of 4.2V.

Next, as a result of these battery checks, if the data is smaller than the reference value, the process returns with the carry flag set to 1 in step #2105, and if it is greater than the reference value, the process returns directly. Above steps #230 and #760
Steps #235 and #765 following battery check
The determination as to whether or not the battery check is OK is made based on whether or not this carry flag is set. That is, when the carry flag is 0 (CY=O), it is OK,
If the carry flag is 1 (CY=1), the result is negative.

Next, the infinite flow MUGEN shown in FIG. 29 will be explained. This infinite flow MUGEN is always executed when the main switch 145 is changed from OFF to OWL as performed in step #260 of the reset flow RESET shown in FIG. When entering this flow, the infinity flag is first set in step #4000, and the number of pulses MRE representing the distance W from the infinity switch ON to the contact surface is set.
Set SNO to infinite counter MC0UNT (step #4050). Next, in step #4100, calculate the motor drive pulse rate MRPR when the infinite switch is ON.
Set in RAM PIR5PR. Since the load on the pulse motor becomes larger than usual when the infinite switch is ON, the pulse rate is set to be smaller than normal and the torque of the motor is increased.

Next, in step #4150, the RAM address DAM
Put the contents into the register X of the CPU, step #420
0 puts motor data MDATAO,X into register A. Next, in step #4250, the contents of register A are read out to the output photo P5, and in step #4300, the contents of register A are read out to the output photo P5.
Let 0teMHF be 1. In this case, the reason why MHF is set to 1 is to ensure that the lens is moved to the infinite position (1). Next, in step #4400, the lowest pulse rate at startup is set as the motor startup pulse rate, and step
With 4450 pulses, 300 is the number of pulses that can be cleared from the infinite position (1) to the near side. Then, in step #4500, TP is set to O, and in step #455
The VPNR is initialized at 0, and at step #4600, the program waits for 3 Ilsec until the motor rotates, and jumps to the MOTOR drive routine shown in FIG.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the battery voltage is a predetermined value (reference value).
When the following conditions occur, the lens is moved to a specific position, and after the movement is completed, AF is stopped. This will be explained with reference to the above flowchart. First, when the main switch 145 is set to 0NC-1AF switch 146, step #750 in FIG.
Step #76o is reached, where a battery check is performed, and if the next step #765 is negative, steps #770 and #775 are executed, resulting in MPCAL, and the process shown in FIG. Step #550
Return to At this time, a specific position is set in step #775 (see FIG. 28). Next, when step #750 in FIG. 25 is reached again, since the battery check flag has been reset in step #770, the process proceeds to step #800 via steps #790 and #795 from step #75o. , here the motor is driven to the specific position.

After that, the process advances to step #8o5, but since the battery check reset flag has been set in the battery check reset routine (FIG. 28) corresponding to the previous step #775, steps #805 to #8
10, then BCNG (step #815), and then step #240 in FIG. 23, where no AF operation is performed.

According to the present invention, even if an obstacle crosses between the observer and the observed object, the AP does not work to focus on the obstacle, making it easier to use. It makes a good telescope.

Moreover, since the AF is disabled only when deviation occurs in the near direction, good responsiveness is maintained when the target is changed from the near side to the far side observation object.

Further, a determining means for determining whether or not the current lens position is closer than a predetermined limit value is provided, and when the determining means determines that the current lens position is closer than the predetermined value, the prohibiting means If the prohibited operation is not performed, when the user was originally looking at a nearby object, that is, when the focus was closer to the limit value than the limit value, the amount of shift to the in-focus position of the new object would be Even if the value exceeds the predetermined value, the inhibiting means will not work, and a new object will be brought into focus.

Further, a determining means is provided for determining whether a deviation exceeding the predetermined value has been detected consecutively for a predetermined number of times or more, and when the determining means determines that a deviation exceeding the predetermined value has been detected for a predetermined number of times or more, the prohibiting means If the configuration is configured so that the prohibited operation is not performed, even if a new object that enters the field of view while observing a distant object shifts toward the near side by a predetermined value or more, it will not be prohibited. is detected a predetermined number of times or more in succession, the inhibiting means does not work, and the automatic focusing mechanism operates so that the new object is brought into focus.

This is effective when the observer intentionally looks at a short distance object from a state where he or she was looking at a long distance object.

The operations of the focus detection means, focus position calculation means, and lens position deviation calculation means are performed many times, but if the prohibition means is not prohibited during the -th operation, the AF operation can be performed. When you start, you can focus on objects at any distance.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1rM is a plan view of binoculars embodying the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a back view. @ Figure 4 is a plan view showing the internal optical system and focus detection module, etc. Figure 5 is a diagram showing the optical system of the focus detection module, Figure 6 is a cross section taken along line A-A' in Figure 4 7 and 7 are cross-sectional views taken along the same <B-B' line, and FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the circuit board used in this embodiment. Figure 9 shows the AF lens drive mechanism viewed from above, Figure 10 shows it viewed from the front, and Figure 1.
Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view thereof. FIG. 12 is a circuit block diagram showing the circuit configuration of this embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the battery storage structure. FIG. 14 is a circuit diagram showing a drive circuit for a stepping motor. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the sequence of two-phase excitation in the circuit of FIG. 14. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the speed control characteristics of the stepping motor. FIG. 17 and FIG. 18 are diagrams showing sequences of one-phase excitation and one-phase-two-phase excitation, respectively. FIG. 19 is a schematic flowchart showing the control of the microcomputer constituting the system controller, and FIGS. 20 and 21 are flowcharts showing specific examples of driving the stepping motor. FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram of blocks in the ranging area. Figure 23, Figure 24, Figure 25, Figure 26, Figure 27,
28, 29, and 30 are detailed flowcharts of FIG. 19. FIG. 31 is an explanatory diagram thereof. FIG. 32 is a circuit diagram for explaining the battery check circuit. FIG. 33, FIG. 34, FIG. 35, and FIG. 36 are explanatory diagrams of the above flowchart. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Binoculars, 4...First operation member for main switch, 5...A
second operating member for F switch, 11.12...first;
Second lens barrel, 13.14... Objective lens, 17.18... Eyepiece lens, 19... Focus detection module, 20a
...light receiving lens, 22...stepping motor,
23... Reduction gear section, 25... CCD line sensor, 26... Lens barrel, 27... Circuit board,
36...Base plate, 37...Camshaft,
38...Lens drive lever 39-...Cam groove,
41...Motor plywood, 48.49...Bin, 55.56...Switch piece for infinite switch, 140
...System controller, 141...Battery, 142...DC/DC converter unit, 143...Battery check circuit, 145-...Main switch, 146...AF switch, 147...Infinite switch , 148... Light emitting diode for warning display, 150...
Grip, 151...Battery cover, 152...
Battery cover release switch, 160...Binocular viewing frame, 161...Distance measurement area, 403...Mechanical (mechanical) hit, φ1~ψ4
... Motor drive signal, L1 to L4... Excitation coil, BLI to BL3... CCD line sensor block. Applicant Minolta Camera Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) A focus detection means that receives light from an object to be observed and generates an electric signal corresponding to the amount of image shift of the object to be observed; and a focus that calculates a focal position to be focused on the object to be observed based on the electric signal. position calculation means; lens position deviation calculation means for calculating a deviation between the focal position determined by the focal position calculation means and the current lens position; a lens driving means for moving the lens; and a prohibition means for prohibiting the lens position driving means from driving the lens when the deviation calculated by the lens position deviation calculation means is closer than the current lens position by a predetermined value or more. A telescope. (2) It has a first determination means for determining whether or not the current lens position is closer than a predetermined limit value, and the first
2. The telescope according to claim 1, wherein when the determining means determines that the distance is closer than the limit value, the inhibiting means does not perform the inhibiting operation. (3) a second determining means for determining whether a deviation exceeding the predetermined value has been detected consecutively for a predetermined number of times or more; 2. The telescope according to claim 1, wherein said inhibiting means does not perform said inhibiting operation when it is determined that said inhibiting operation is prohibited. (4) The operation of the focus detection means, the focus position calculation means, and the lens position deviation calculation means is performed many times, but the inhibition by the prohibition means is not performed at the first operation. The telescope mentioned.